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Back in early 2013 we fell for the becalming and soothing sounds of Falmouth’s The White Bicycles, so much so that we made them our ’W’ band. The music was so lovely that we felt sure that they would soon be talked about across the blog world yet they seemed to drop off the radar somewhat. Fast forward a year and there’s been a new addition to the band, a new track – the stark and beguiling ”Dust”, an EP on the way and now, a video for another new track, “Easier”.

Like the video, “Easier” has a warmth and charm to it. It brings to mind a muted, softer and more laidback Spring Offensive. Matthew Howes’ vocals are calming, the synths are gentle and the subject matter is an aspect of life that is often forgotten but should never be ignored. Like Spring Offensive, The White Bicycles are able to convey these aspects of our existence in a respectful manner, almost affectionate they give us tenderness and concern within their soothing melodies and cushioned digital rhythms. It’s really rather lovely.

When they were featured by esteemed publication, The Tipping Point recently, it was noted that The White Bicycles had thus far managed to fly mostly under the radar. With tracks like “Dust” and “Easier” as well as a debut EP (which is also very very lovely, trust us) surely that won’t be the case for much longer.

”Easier” is taken from their forthcoming eponymous EP which is due for release on 5 May and can be pre-ordered here.

It’s been a while since we last heard from our ’W’ band and since then Falmouth based The White Bicycles have gone through something of a transformation. Like a reverse Spice Girls Christmas number one, this two has become three with Jack Curnow joining Matthew Howes and Ryan Nolan. Their new track, the first from their forthcoming eponymous EP, also sees the band move in a slightly different direction to before.

Previously they gave us sounds that were calming, poetic and peaceful. A welcome respite from the hurly burly of day to day life, “Courtesy” and “Wristwatch” were intimate, solemn and beautiful. Now, with “Dust” they have given us a song that is all that and more. It is still poetic, intimate, solemn and beautiful but with the addition of a stark electronic beat to the elegant guitar sounds and the delicate buffeting of synths they are weaving a more intricate and impressive tapestry.

With that said, there is a distinctly minimalist feel to the track, like a pristine white room where the only furnishings are absolutely essential. There are no extraneous frivolities or audio tracks included just because; less is more and on “Dust” The White Bicycles have given us just as much as we need for a wonderfully cool and pristine piece of electro pop.

Taken from the ‘White Bicycles’ EP which is due out on 5 May, “Dust” can be downloaded for free from the Soundcloud player below.

Googling Falmouth University may not be top on most music bloggers list of evening activities, but here are Alphabet Bands, we dare to be different. It turns out, from a very limited perusal of Wikipedia, that the notable alumni of Falmouth includes a lot of actors and artists we have never heard of (and a couple we have), someone who professes to be a ‘cyborg activist and artist’, and one musician, Ben Howard. Ben Howard, who, as you know, signed to Island Records, a label famous for many things including being the home of esteemed folk singer, Nick Drake. Why oh why, we hear you ask, is any of this important? Well, forgive us for coming across like a low rent Kevin Bacon, but it is all due to the serendipitous connections of the world.

Today we welcome The White Bicycles to our family of wonderful Alphabet Bands, a band which was born into this world at Falmouth University when songwriter Matthew Howes met guitarist Ryan Nolan. Not only that, but the name comes from the memoirs of producer Joe Boyd, who famously brought songwriter Nick Drake to light. It’s all connected see?

They pitch themselves as being ”a welcome antidote for the haste of modern living” and they are not far wrong. Listening to their latest single, “Courtesy”, in particular makes you feel calm and in control. It moves along at a gentle pace; like you are on an amble through the countryside for a few moments of relaxed tranquillity, looking out from atop a hill as the world whizzes by below you. They use space as an instrument, allowing notes, melodies, lyrics to breathe and linger.

Surprisingly they have labelled their music on SoundCloud as ‘shoegaze’; it is not. It is quite the opposite in fact. It is lift-your-head-up-from-the-rat-race-and-look-around music, take-a-moment-to-appreciate-the-world music. It’s folk, but it isn’t. It’s pop, but it isn’t. It is lo-fi indie, but it isn’t. Its soundscapes are contemplative; they are considered, thoughtful and melancholic. “Wristwatch” is intimate, like walking through the snowfall in moonlight as the rest of the world sleeps while “Empty Frames” is a secret, a whisper The White Bicycles share only with the listener.

It may feel that this contradictory non-style of theirs is an affectation, it isn’t. There is not a bit of pretention in the music of The White Bicycles; it is just simple, poetic and beautiful. We recommend that you find somewhere quiet, shut yourself away from the world for a few minutes, turn down the lights if you can and just listen. Let life carry on outside as you relax with this enthralling new band.

All three of The White Bicycles tracks can be downloaded for free from their SoundCloud profile, and gig details can be found on their Facebook page.